Nausea is the feeling that you are going to vomit, which is also described as ’sick feeling in the stomach’ or ’stomach turning’. It is a sensation that may lead to gagging or vomiting or the feeling may persist and even intensify with no other reaction. It is an extremely uncomfortable feeling and can be debilitating if it persists for a long period of time leading to a loss of appetite, irritability and difficulty in functioning on a daily basis.
Hair loss may occur in patches (alopecia areata), complete hair loss on the head (alopecia totalis) or even hair loss throughout the entire body (alopecia universalis). The latter is rare but hair loss on the head is a common complaint that affects large portions of the population, especially men, after the 30s. While hair loss can occur at a younger age, it is not common and should be investigated for other systemic causes.
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Anxiety is one of the most common psychosomatic conditions, characterized by the intense stress response, fear and panic, in response to a stimulus. Usually in anxiety the response is out of proportion to the causative factor and at times, there may be no clear cause for the anxiety, not even to the sufferer. Anxiety itself is an emotional state and triggers the release of adrenalin, the main stress hormone, which then has a physiological effect on the body. Adrenalin increases the heart rate, may slightly elevate the pressure, dilates the pupils and mobilizes the body’s glucose stores to provide for increased energy needs.
Angioedema is the swelling that occurs in the deeper layers of the skin or mucus membranes. While it is often associated with allergies, there are different types of angioedema that may be a result of other causes. Angioedema is often thought of as the typical skin presentation associated with a ‘fat’ lip, swollen eyelids and cheek but it can also cause swelling within the airways and gut.
Angioedema in an anaphylactic reaction requires immediate medical attention.
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Hypertension is a persistent elevation of the blood pressure where the systolic pressure (pressure when the heart contracts) is greater than 140 mm.Hg and a diastolic pressure (pressure when the heart relaxes) is above 90 mm.Hg. However, other factors have to be taken into consideration, especially when evaluating an increased systolic pressure before diagnosing a patient with high blood pressure.
Body hair varies in type, thickness and length and specific growth patterns are seen in men and women. Typically women have finer, downy hair (vellus type) on most of their body and thicker hair (terminal hair) on the pubic region and armpits. In some women, this thick terminal hair may begin to grow on the chest, face (beard or moustache/mustache), back and thighs. This condition is known as hirsutism where higher than normal levels of male sex hormones in a woman’s body triggers this hair growth pattern.
Swine flu (2009 H1N1 flu) is a viral infection that causes a range of symptoms similar to the seasonal flu and was initially transmitted from pigs to humans. The virus is a mutation of the type A influenza virus from humans and birds and most of the cases we now see is due to person to person transmission. While the media hype around swine flu and deaths due to the infection continue to create widespread concern, the reality is that in a healthy person, swine flu is not the deadly virus that it is portrayed as.
Period pain is often accepted as a regular symptom associated with menses but is usually an indication of a hormone imbalance. Painful periods may occur as a symptom in many menstrual disorders like polycystic ovary syndrome but in healthy women, period pain should signal the need for medical intervention.